Traffic directing system for parking areas



Nov. 5, 1963 R. R. SMITH TRAFFIC DIRECTING SYSTEM FOR PARKING AREASFiled May 1. 1961 INVENTOR. R. R. SMITH HIS A'IITORNEY T74 TT mm mm"0 1. 2 m LJI 5 52% me I United States Patent 3,11%,ill'h TRAFFZCDBECTENG SYSTEh i PARKING Richard R. Smith, Rochester, Nfa to GeneralSignal Corporation Filed May 1, 1X3, Sier. No. linzfil-S 4 Claims. (Ci.Md-ST.)

This invention relates to a trafiic directing system for parking areas,and, more particularly, elates to such a system for directing vehicleswith respect to a parking area and with a cautioning signal beingemployed for apprising vehicle operators of the space condition in sucharea.

In modern parking areas and garages, it is considered desirable toprovide a counting system which registers the number of vehiclesentering and exiting from a parking area so as to provide a runningcount of the number of available spaces within such area. Such a systemis normally employed to control an indication means provided fordirecting vehicles into the area or away from such area.

The convenience of having such counting system to control the indicationmeans mentioned above has been recognized by the prior art to the extentthat such an indication means is controlled for directing vehicles intothe area until such area is completely filled. When such area is filledto capacity, remaining vehicles are directed away from the parking area.It is also recognized that a predetermined number of vehicles bepermitted to leave a parking area which has been filled to capacitybefore the detection means is once again controlled to direct vehiclesinto such area.

It is proposed in this invention to provide a system controlled by thecounting system of a parking area for directing vehicles into or awayfrom a parking area. This invention also provides for apprising theoperators of vehicles that a given parking area is near capacity but hasnot been completely filled to capacity. It is further proposed in thisinvention to provide for cautioning veliicle operators being directedaway from a parking area that such area has at least one availablespace.

Thus, one object of this invention is to provide a system for apprisingvehicle operators of the nearly filled condition of a given parking mea.

Another object of this invention is to provide a system for apprisingvehicle operators of the soon-to-beavailable parking spaces.

Other objects, purposes and characteristic features of the presentinvention will be in part obvious from the accompanying drawings, and input pointed out as the description of the invention progresses.

The drawing illustrates one embodiment of this invention. I

Referring to the drawing, a differentially con ollasle counter DC, whichindicates the number of available parking spaces, is shown as having anadd coil and a subtract coil. In this type of counter, hot the add coiland subtract coil need only to be pulsed brieily to cause the counter toeither add or subtract a count. The add coil is shown to be pulsed bythe actuation of a button it), while the subtract coil is shown to bepulsed by the actuation of a button 11. Additionally, the add coil andsubtract coil of counter DC may be controlled by an automatic control ACwhich can be a counting sys tem, as briefly mentioned above.

The counter DC includes a units decade UD and a tens decade TD each ofwhich has a read-out control switch, such as switches R01 and R02 whichare respectively controlled to positions representative of the countregistered upon the corresponding decade UD or TD.

Signalling means 12 includes two arrows in and 1'7 and a circularindication l8. Arrow 16 when illuminated directs vehicles into the area,and arrow 17 when illmninated directs vehicles away from the area. Thecircular indication 13 provides a caution indication in conjunction witheither arrow 16 or 17. Arrows 16 and 1'7 may be colored green, whilecircular indication 18 may be colored yellow, or as otherwise desirable.Moreover, it is considered as being within the scope of this inventionto utiize the arrows 16 and -17 and circular indication 18 either incombination or separately for iridicating the capacity conditions of aparking area to a responsible person such as the parking area attendant.

Relay FR controls through its contact 20 the illumination of arrows l6and 17. When relay ER is dropped away arrow 16 is illuminated, but whenrelay PR is picked up arrow 17 is illuminated instead. Relay FR can onlypick up when the count registered by counter DC is 00 since only thenwill relay T67 be energized through contact 23 of decade switch R02 andrelay U0 through contact 25 of decade switch R01 thereby completing acircuit for the energization of the wiring of re lay FR through therespective closed contacts 26 and 38 of these two relays Th and Utl.Once relay PR is picked up, a stick circuit is completed to maintain itenergized through back contact 42 of relay U5 and front contact 43 ofrelay FR. Because of this, relay FR will remain picked up until thereare five or more parking spaces again available since it is only whenthis condition is met that the stick circuit for this relay can beinterrupted. Incidentally, if the number of vehicles entering theparking area should exceed its capacity so that counter DC will beoperated beyond the 00 condition such as by being operated to the 99condition, then relay FR will still remain picked up because then analternate stick circuit will be completed through back contact 4% ofrelay Til and through front contact 43 of relay FR.

Before the parking area is filled to capacity so that relay PR is pickedup, relay NPR is picked up. Thus, when the count registered upon counterDC is 04 so that relays Ti and U4 are energized, a circuit is completedto energize relay NPR through the closed contacts 26 and 27 of therelays T4) and U4 respectively. As the count thereafter is decreasedbelow 04, relay NPR is continually energized since a stick circuit willbe established for this relay through back contact 33 of relay Uil, backcontact 34% of relay U5, and front contact 36 of relay NPR. This stickcircuit will be maintained until the count reaches 00 at which timerelay Uh will pick up and interrupt the circuit by the opening of backcontact 33.

To summarize the operation thus far, relay FR remains dropped away asthe count decreases toward 0 and is picked up only when the countactually reaches ()0 upon cormter DC. Until this happens, arrow 16 isilluminated so as to direct ineornin vehicles into the correspondingparking area, but when the count of 00 is reached, relay FR picks up andarrow 17 is then illuminated while arrow 16 is extinguished. Subsequentvehicles are then directed to an alternate parking area. However, fromthe time that the count on counter DC reaches )4 and until it reaches00, relay NPR is picked up so that the circular indication 18 isilluminated and this indicates to arriving motorists that, although theyare being directed by the illuminated arrow 16 into the respectiveparking area, there are only a few parking spaces still available inthat area. Of course, when the capacity of the parking area has beenreached so that arrow 16 is no longer illuminated, then it is no longerdesired to illuminate the circular indication 13 and it is for thisreason that relay NPR is controlled to drop away when the count reaches00 on counter DC.

When vehicles begin to exit from the assuming parking area, relay NPR isonce again controlled to a picked up condition for illuminating circularindication l8 and is maintained in such picked up condition untilread-out control switch RG1 is effective to pick up a relay U5. Morespecifically, when the count registered upon counter DC ascends asadditional parking spaces become available, relay NPR is again pickedup. In the drawing, this is shown to occur when the count reaches 01. Atthat time, an alternate pick-up circuit for relay NPR is establishedthrough back contact 33 of relay U back contact 34 of relay U5, frontcontact of relay U1, front contact 46 of relay Ttl, to the winding ofrelay NPR. Upon the picking up of relay NPR the previously-describedstick circuit is again completed, and since this stick circuit includesback contact 34 of relayUS, the stick circuit will be interrupted whenthe count of G5 is reached. In other words, as increasing numbers or"parking spaces become available, relay NPR which is picked up at thetime the first such parking space becomes available, remains picked upuntil there are five such available spaces. Throughout this time, thecircular indication 18 is steadily illuminated. As previously mentioned,the stick circuit which has been maintaining relay FR energized includesback contact 432 of relay U5 and this means that relay PR is alsocontinually energized during this time that additional parking spacesare becoming available, and this condition continues to prevail untilfive parking spaces have been available so that relay U5 picks up.Throughout this time, therefore, arrow 17 has been steadily illuminatedso that incoming traffic has been diverted to an alternate parking area.Concurrently, circular indication '18 has been illuminated to inform theincoming motorists that, although they are being directed to analternate area, one or more spaces are now available in the parking areagoverned by signalling means 12 and that trafiic may soon again bedirected into that area.

It is apparent from the drawing that the relays U4 and US could havetheir respective pick up circuits completed through other contacts ofswitch R01 so as to vary the illumination control of the arrows 16 and17 with respect to circular indication 18 to provide the above-mentionedcaution indications.

Having described a traflic directing system for parking areas, as onespecific embodiment of the present invention, it is desired to beunderstood that this form is seheated to facilitate in the disclosure ofthe invention rather than to limit the number of forms which it mayassume; and, it is to be further understood that various modifications,adaptations and alterations may be applied to the specific form shown tomeet the requirements of practice, without in any manner departing fromthe spirit or scope of the present invention.

Vl/"nat I claim is:

1. In a parking facility having at least two parking areas, means forregistering at each instant the number of available parking spaces inthe first of said areas, signalling means being operable to present afirst signal indication directing further incoming vehicles into saidfirst area and to present alternatively a second signal indicationdirecting further incoming vehicles to the second of said areas, meanscoupled between said registering means and said signalling means forcontrolling said signalling means to display said first signalindication so long as the number of available park-mg spaces registeredby said registering means exceeds a predetermined number and to displaysaid second signal indication when the number of available parkingspaces registered by said registering means fails to exceed saidpredetermined minimum number, auxiliary signal indication means alsocontrolled by said coupling means and being operable to display adistinctive signal indication for all count values registered by saidregistering means exceeding said predeterinined minimum value but notexceeding a predeterf mined higher value, wherebysaid first signalindication a is displayed by said signalling means and incoming vehiclesare directed by said signalling means to said first parking area untilsaid predetermined value is registered by said registering means butsaid auxiliary indication is displayed prior to the attainment of saidpredetermined minimum value concurrently with the display of said firstsignal indication by sa d signalling means to reby indicate the imminentattainment of a filled condition of said first parking area.

2. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein said coupling means afteroperating said signalling means to display said second signal indicationupon the attainment of said predetermined count by said registeringmeans maintains said signalling means in a condition to thereafterdisplay said second signal indication as the count registered by saidregistering means increases above said predeterm ned minimum value untilsaid count regestered attains a preselected second value, whereby upon adecrease in the number of available parking spaces in said first area topredetermined minimum value results in the routing of further vehiclesto said second area and vehicles are not again rerouted to said firstarea until the number of available parking spaces reaches saidpreselected value.

3. The invention as defined in claim 1 wherein said coupling means alsocontrols said auxiliary signalling means to display said distinctivesignal subsequent to the attainment of said predetermined minimum countby said registering means and for ascending values of said count untilsaid count attains said preselected second value, whereby the concurrentdisplay of said distinctive signal by said auxiliary signal indicationmeans with the display of said second signal indication by saidsignalling means indicates to incoming motorists the probabilityimminent routing of further vehicles to said first parking area by saidsignalling means.

4. in a parking facility having at least two parking areas, first meansfor counting each vehicle entering the first of said areas, second meansfor counting each vehicle leaving said first rca, differential countingmeans governed jointly y said first and second counting means forregistering the number of available parking spaces in said first area,signalling means governed by said differential counting means to displaya first signal indication directing vehicles into said first area whenthe count regis ered by said differential counting means exceeds apredetermined minimum value and to display a second signal indi ationdirecting vehicles away from said first area and to said second areawhen the count registered by said differential counting means does notexceed said predetermined minimum value, and auxiliary signal indicationmeans being selectively operable to display a distinctive signallingindication concurrently with the display of said first or second signalindication by said signalling means for predetermined count valuesregistered by said differential counting means which exceed saidpredetennuned minimum value, whereby the display of said distinctivesignal indication concurrently with the d splay of said first signalindication Warns incoming vehicles of the imminent routing of vehiclesto said second area and the concurrent display of said distinctiveindication with said second signal indication Warns incoming vehicles ofthe imrminent routing of further vehicles back to said first area.

Burn Sept. 20, 1949 Burn June 30, 1953

1. IN A PARKING FACILITY HAVING AT LEAST TWO PARKING AREAS, MEANS FORREGISTERING AT EACH INSTANT THE NUMBER OF AVAILABLE PARKING SPACES INTHE FIRST OF SAID AREAS, SIGNALLING MEANS BEING OPERABLE TO PRESENT AFIRST SIGNAL INDICATION DIRECTING FURTHER INCOMING VEHICLES INTO SAIDFIRST AREA AND TO PRESENT ALTERNATIVELY A SECOND SIGNAL INDICATIONDIRECTING FURTHER INCOMING VEHICLES TO THE SECOND OF SAID AREAS, MEANSCOUPLED BETWEEN SAID REGISTERING MEANS AND SAID SIGNALLING MEANS FORCONTROLLING SAID SIGNALLING MEANS TO DISPLAY SAID FIRST SIGNALINDICATION SO LONG AS THE NUMBER OF AVAILABLE PARKING SPACES REGISTEREDBY SAID REGISTERING MEANS EXCEEDS A PREDETERMINED NUMBER AND TO DISPLAYSAID SECOND SIGNAL INDICATION WHEN THE NUMBER OF AVAILABLE PARKINGSPACES REGISTERED BY SAID REGISTERING MEANS FAILS TO EXCEED SAIDPREDETERMINED MINIMUM NUMBER, AUXILIARY SIGNAL INDICATION MEANS ALSOCONTROLLED BY SAID COUPLING MEANS AND BEING OPERABLE TO DISPLAY ADISTINCTIVE SIGNAL INDICATION FOR ALL COUNT VALUES REGISTERED BY SAIDREGISTERING MEANS EXCEEDING SAID PREDETERMINED MINIMUM VALUE BUT NOTEXCEEDING A PREDETERMINED HIGHER VALUE, WHEREBY SAID FIRST SIGNALINDICATION IS DISPLAYED BY SAID SIGNALLING MEANS AND INCOMING VEHICLESARE DIRECTED BY SAID SIGNALLING MEANS TO SAID FIRST PARKING AREA UNTILSAID PREDETERMINED MINIMUM VALUE IS REGISTERED BY SAID REGISTERING MEANSBUT SAID AUXILIARY INDICATION IS DISPLAYED PRIOR TO THE ATTAINMENT OFSAID PREDETERMINED MINIMUM VALUE CONCURRENTLY WITH THE DISPLAY OF SAIDFIRST SIGNAL INDICATION BY SAID SIGNALLING MEANS TO THEREBY INDICATE THEIMMINENT ATTAINMENT OF A FILLED CONDITION OF SAID FIRST PARKING AREA.